High Desert Test Sites is a platform for art and experiences that enable us to step outside everyday life and envision new possibilities. The organization is based at A-Z West—Andrea Zittel’s 80-acre compound and artwork—where it brings together artists, writers, and thinkers to create projects that engage the desert and its communities.
The 
Experiment
1
To challenge traditional
conventions of 
ownership, property, 
and patronage.
3
2
To insert art directly 
into a life, landscape, 
or community.
To encourage art that 
remains in the context  
for which it was 
created.
A-Z West
Located in Joshua Tree, the former home and studio of Andrea Zittel is now stewarded by and headquarters for HDTS.
Annual
Fellowship
The HDTS Fellowship is an annual invitation which provides established artists the opportunity to spend extended time at A-Z West while working to realize an artwork or program that engages and enriches our High Desert community.
Events
Winter Open House
December 6, 2025
11 AM–3PM 
HDTS Fellow An-My Lê in conversation with MOCA Senior Curator Anna Katz
January 10, 2026
3–4PM 
News
September 1, 2025: 2026 Spring Work Trade Residency Open Call now closed
April 20, 2025: An-My Lê Named 2025 High Desert Test Sites Fellow
 
            
              
            
            
          
             
            
              
            
            
          
             
            
              
            
            
          
             
            
              
            
            
          
               
            
              
            
            
          
               
            
              
            
            
          
               
            
              
            
            
          
               
            
              
            
            
          
             
            
              
            
            
          
            